Thursday, May 28, 2009

The Tattoo on Your Forehead

The bindi has been part of my forehead for a very long time. And I would feel lost without it.

The 'dot' has gone through a lot of transformation. Earlier, it was made from turmeric powder mixed with lime to obtain a bright red colour. It was an art to dip the finger in the powder and deftly apply it on the forehead between the brows with a slight rotatory movement to make a perfect circle.

A mini revolution took place when the powder was replaced by liquid in a bottle with a small stick by which one could apply the dot on the forehead. But with the powder and the liquid, there was always the possibility of it being wiped off especially during the rains.

And that probably led to the bindi in a sticker form . And with it a whole new fashion statement.

I went the other day to a small little store in a tiny winding lane which houses the most amazing stuff. I stepped in to one of the shops which in our part of the city is called the 'bangle store'. The bangle store does have a few bangles on sale, but you would find everything else that could find a place on your dressing table. The bindis, hair clips, bands, cosmetics, perfumes, pins, combs, hair brushes and so on. And the range of bindis that you get in these stores is mind boggling. Bindis with beads, with crystals, in different shapes and colours. For some it is an art, where they create a new bindi by taking a different shape and work it into a new design on the forehead! And some even use it as body art.

You could call it a temporary tattoo without the pain. Despite this new fashion trend, the bindi on my forehead has remained in the circular form. It also seems to have shrunk in size, but nevertheless it is there. Perhaps the only make-up that I regularly use!

i remember the bindi from it's existence in the liquid form . exactly like the pic you have there :). My mom had a tube in her dresser.

I love wearing bindis with my sari. have not done that for a few years though, mainly because I've not had an occassion to wear that here in the US. i usually wear the simply ones..none of the frills that you get nowadays. I like the black ones mainly, either round or the small elongated ones. nice post :)